Thousands of US communities forgo federal flood insurance
Catastrophic inland flooding in
But National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) coverage may not be available to everyone who wants it, Insurify reports.
Nationally, 2,279 communities don't participate in the voluntary program that provides insurance against flood damage, according to the
Often, non-participating communities are rural, and many have very small populations. Other communities may seem to have little to no risk of flooding, though some may be unaware of the true risk in their area.
Communities that don't participate in the NFIP often "have horrible, inadequate flood maps,"
A lack of good data and floodplain maps is a widespread problem for communities, Berginnis said.
"We have 3.5 million miles of streams, rivers, and coastlines in the country. We've mapped 1.2 million miles of them. We've only mapped a third of our floodplains."
How the NFIP Works
In order to participate in the NFIP, communities must agree to regulate residential and commercial development in any floodplains that fall within the municipality's boundaries. Communities can participate in the NFIP only if their adopted and enforced regulations meet or exceed NFIP criteria.
In participating communities, any property is eligible to buy NFIP coverage—even those outside a mapped floodplain. Currently, the NFIP underwrites approximately 5 million policies in over 22,600 communities across all 50 states and six
Any area that receives rain can be at risk for flooding, and flooding is the most common natural disaster, causing the costliest damages, according to
Why Communities Don't Participate
Berginnis, who spent a decade in
Some have no identified floodplains in their boundaries. Others may have flood zones that are already off limits for development. Some may have considered the relative costs of initiating a floodplain management program—a prerequisite for NFIP participation—and chose not to participate in the program.
In such situations, town officials may decide participating isn't worth the effort—especially if they don't see demand from residents for flood insurance. A lack of penalties for non-participation may also be a factor, Berginnis said.
"Essentially, joining the [NFIP] is a very simple and straightforward proposition," he said. "Typically, the community passes a resolution of intent to join the program. That's something the [town] council could do, literally at their next meeting. Then, they adopt a set of regulations and standards that include designating someone to be the floodplain manager."
Every state provides model fill-in-the-blank ordinances to make it easy for communities to create the regulations required to participate in the NFIP, he said. Once communities commit to participation, they must administer and enforce the regulations they adopted around development in floodplains.
"We've kind of made it easy in this country, in my opinion, for communities to participate, and remove all obstacles for them participating," Berginnis said. "They just need the political will to do it."
Consequences of Non-Participation
Insurify
Residents of non-participating communities can't buy federally backed flood insurance. They may also struggle to find private flood insurers willing to cover their properties, as some private insurers won't sell flood coverage in areas that don't take part in the NFIP.
Additionally, residents won't be able to use federally backed mortgages, such as loans from the
The Tragic Example of
Perhaps no state is a better example of the potential consequences of unprotected flood risk than
Helene ripped through the northwestern part of the state on
Flood damage to homes and businesses in affected communities is extensive. Since many affected communities are participants in the federal program, the NFIP could cover those losses, at least in part. But few property owners in those areas purchased NFIP policies before Helene.
For example,
At least one Tarheel community that saw damage from Helene doesn't participate in the NFIP.
The town of
The town was home to more than 7,300 people, according to the
Many of the
What's Next: Will Communities Rethink Non-Participation?
Insurify
Helene's severe effect on many inland communities across multiple states took many people by surprise. But with climate change driving more frequent and stronger hurricanes and other weather events, it's likely more communities will face situations similar to Helene's effect on
Smaller communities may be unaware of the elevated risks they face.
"In counties and rural areas, you need to pick up 10 to 20 square miles of drainage before a
Property owners can take steps to protect themselves, even if they're in a non-participating community, he said. The federal government has been working for over a decade to support the development of a private flood insurance market. People in communities where NFIP coverage isn't available may be able to purchase private flood insurance. Homeowners and businesses can also ask their town leaders to begin participating in the NFIP.
Above all, Berginnis cautioned, communities should continue to prepare for flooding—even those that have already experienced a catastrophic flood event.
"Do not delude yourself to think it can't happen again, or it won't happen again. It will," he said. "And it could happen next week, it could happen next month, it could happen a year from now—the same extreme event."
This story was produced by Insurify and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
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